So you live in Oregon Bahati?
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So you live in Oregon Bahati?
A while ago he was talking about seeing TLKOB in Portland, I'm assuming he lives near Portland from this quote. I wish I lived near Portland. Then I wouldn't have to pay freakin 9% sales tax on everything I buy... it adds up you know. But I do prefer to pump my own gas. Oregon's weird.Quote:
Originally posted by Bahati
TLKoB's been getting plenty of mention on my local radio stations since it opened in Portland, Oregon on September 9th.
:confused:
But Lloyd Center mall was really cool, better than all the malls we have here in the Seattle area.
:lol: Why? I like it how they pump the gas for you... Why would you want to get out of your car in the rain? :pQuote:
Originally posted by Lion_King_300
But I do prefer to pump my own gas. Oregon's weird.
Well the rain's usually not a problem cuz the gas stations are covered, but I usually go in and buy something from the store anyways... and I like to squeegee my own windows (poor man's car wash)
I'd get used to it if I lived there I'm sure but I grew up on self-serve and I'd even get out and pump the gas for my dad when I was a kid and we were driving somewhere.
Are you supposed to tip those guys anyway?
Hmm I don't really remember... I don't think so.
To clear up any confusion, I live in Vancouver, though it might as well be Portland: the only thing separating the two is the Columbia River. My past comment on radio stations promoting TLKoB in Portland was due to the fact that many Vancouver denizens listen to stations based in Portland. :lol:
I set out for Spokane on Saturday at about 4:30 PM. The wind was pretty fierce along 84 after hopping the Columbia and passing through Portland, but it died down around a half-hour later. I stopped for gas in Biggs, a town which lies a tad over ten miles east of the Dalles. Mind you, Biggs is in Oregon, so someone did pump the gas for me. I've yet to hear any explanation for why Oregon still does this. Washington doesn't, and we're just fine.
I jumped back on 84 and continued eastward until nearing Hermiston, where I slid onto 82 and passed back into Washington territory. 82 curves west around the Kennewick/Pasco area farther north. I switched onto 182 east and met up with 395 north shortly thereafter. The 395 later merges into 90, which took me northeast and the rest of the way to Spokane.
There is a barrier of fog, I'm convinced, that permanently sits around Spokane. The last 40 miles or so to Spokane was nothing but fog. Dense fog, too, and at night. I ran into the same barrier when leaving Spokane the next day, albeit when there was more light out.
I rode into Spokane at about 10:30 PM and promptly had another 30 minutes consumed in trying to find a place to stay. Fortunately, a Budget Inn conveniently located on the edge of downtown sheltered me for the night.
Spokane is an interesting city. As I learned the next morning, the entire downtown area acts as one giant wireless hotspot: anyone who visits it can register on a webpage for two hours of free internet access. There's a fair number of churches, too, old ones with really impressive masonry work. I wish I had brought my camera along, but not just for the churches: it seemed that about every single lightpost in the downtown area was adorned with TLKoB banners! I hadn't spotted them as I was driving around at night, but when I made the 5-minute drive from my hotel to the Spokane Opera House around 12:30 PM on Sunday, they were impossible to miss. One parking lot near the center even had a huge TLKoB billboard up on display. I'd have given entire kingdoms for a camera!
The Spokane Opera House is a gorgeous building, covered with massive windows and possessing simply killer architecture. There's a convention center being built next to it which looks equally impressive, even in its unfinished state. A large electronic sign sits out front declaring TLKoB's presence. When I arrived at the Opera House, one unfortunate soul was standing outside holding a green sign with "Need Tickets" in black writing. Glad to have my own entrance ensured, I stepped inside.
I cannot convey just how large the entrance/lobby area of the Opera House is. Keller Auditorium pales in comparison with that place. The large windows do a great job illuminating the interior, which, when I was there, was sprawling with merchandise booths and the like. With about 10 minutes to go until the 1 PM showing, I took an elevator up and tracked down my seat, N37, located dead-center in the orchestra-level.
First act: magnificent. If anything differed from the Portland show, I didn't notice or don't remember it.
The intermission gave me my opportunity to have an obligatory go at merchandise. I purchased "The Lion King: Pride Rock on Broadway" for $40 (cheaper online, but hey), another shirt for $30, and a hat for $20. I was somewhat disappointed to see that there were no Spokane-specific shirts like the one I have from Portland. I've been wearing that hat religiously the last few days.
Second act was just as good as the first, but with a slight twist at the end. As the curtain dropped and rose again during the closing applause, Larry Yando (Scar) stepped forward. He thanked the audience and the city of Spokane for their hospitality, then gave a brief presentation to encourage donation to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. A number of items were mentioned as purchasable in the lobby: hand-crafted animal dolls, ornate bead necklaces, and last but not least, TLKoB tour posters autographed by the entire cast. I would love to have purchased a poster, but I'd already spent everything I had with me during the intermission. I shuffled my way through the crowd and out to my car with a bag full of memories in hand.
The drive back home was just as long as the trip to Spokane, nearly six hours and close to 400 miles. Hit Biggs again for gas and had someone else pump again. Arrived home, fired off a message on Lea, and retired to bed.
Oh wow, what a great story Bahati! I guess I shouldn't be complaining about my 3 hour drive from Seattle to Portland, yours was twice as long! That's great Yando took an extra moment to do that, I think it's great when the actors speak to the audience, unscripted, after the show is over.
I figured that being an Opera House that the foyer would be bigger than Keller Auditorium, sounds like a fantastic place. Glad you enjoyed it (as if you wouldn't :lol:) can't wait to see the show down in Sharifu's neck of the woods (San Jose Center for the Performing Arts) on my 20th birthday in a few months!
Nice souvenir picks too, Pride Rock on Broadway is an incredible read. I buy just about all my TLKOB merchandise on Ebay though, much cheaper. I recently scored a really nice brand new TLKOB white fleece pullover for only about $20, they don't sell that in the touring company and costs $50 at the New Amsterdam!
Oh yeah, and also glad to hear you're a Washingtonian, barely :) That makes three of us on Lea!
i went to the spokane poduction too!!
it was a 8 1/2 hour drive for me though, so it was a little longer than yours.:cheese:
SO AMAZING!!!
i got a giraffe pin, spakly t shirt, book, bracelet and yea.
scar didnt talk about aids though. bummer. i wanna dolly!!!:grrr:
so good.
worth the 17 hour total drive.
we spent 1 night in the red lion hotel.
Now, for the poll, I really think "Circle of Life" was one of the most amazing scenes I have ever seen! =D
For me it was a virtual tie... COL and He Lives in You reprise both just about brought me to tears the first time I saw them, and in the poll those two scenes have been battling for #1 and finally the Ghost scene pulled ahead!
I voted for HLIY because, just like in the movie, the story would just not be the same without Mufasa's Ghost physically reappearing and speaking to Simba, and the delicate way they intertwine the song and lyrics with the dialogue is nothing short of heart-stopping, and when the three-story tall ghost appears from the little speckles of light, that just sends chills down your spine!
I personally love this scene because it represents the transition of the hero's lowest point of denial to his pinnacle of revelation (the end where all the dancers are on stage after Simba decides to return) and the sudden change in mood and lighting takes you on this emotional roller coaster that captivates you, kinda like the whole show does.
Technically I think COL is better than HLIY but as far as emotional appeal and personal memorability for me, HLIY reprise is my fav.
um, what he said:D
I also voted for the HLIY reprise. The materialization of Mufasa's ghost is absolutely breathtaking. Despite knowing what to expect from the Portland show, my heart still skipped a beat in Spokane when the indeterminate objects swirling in the background all flew together to form the face of Mufasa.
It was sweet, i saw it for my birthday last year...Simba had freakin swords!!! :haha:
^I went for my birthday too! :D I must say it was one of the coolest presents I've ever recieved!
Got a quick story:
Today I went to Toys R Us to buy a few things, including a Jumbo Nala plush that was on sale for only $9.99, anyway I went to check out and the guy asks me (probably after noticing my Lion King jacket and Nala plush) if I saw TLKOB at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle last winter. I reply that I did, and that it was one of the most incredible experiences of my life - turns out that his other job is being an usher at the Paramount and he saw TLKOB SIXTY SEVEN (67) times by exact count, working five nights a week down there, and he said he never got tired of it!
Imagine, getting to watch TLKOB every night not only for free, but getting PAID to do it! That would be an awesome job. He also told me that he knew the whole cast by a first-name basis and learned some of the Swahili in the production (some of the chants and opening to Circle of Life) and said it was a great experience for him. I am just a *little* bit jealous!
So now we know: If you're obsessed with TLKOB, get a job as an usher at the local theatre that will host TLKOB when it comes to your city, and the show also hires an extensive amount of local crew and volunteers and I'm sure they get complimentary seats as well.
1. i have that jumbo nala plushie, and a jumbo simba!
2...................
SO UNFAIR!!!!! as soon as i turn 16, im gonna do that.
PS who else thinks TLKoB should come to Vancouver??? HUGE city, and its close to lots of you washington people, and, of course, nafklt.
I've tried to get an ushering position here but you have to be old. They only hire older people. It kind of sucks. Plus I refuse to seat people after the curtain so I'd probably get in trouble and yelled at a lot.
Strange, the guy I talked to was really young, probably not much older than me maybe early 20's but not older than that. Guess it depends on the theatre, he probably had connections of some sort to get that job because the Paramount is the nicest theatre in Seattle.
TLKOB should definitely come to Vancouver BC before they quit touring! I am very surprised that they haven't gone up there yet, although they are marketing it as a "U.S." National tour. Having hit Seattle, Portland and Spokane in the past year it's going to be very unlikely that they're going to come back to the Pacific Northwest again in the near future, but if anywhere they'd go north of the border I think. We just have to wait for the new touring schedule to see!
Aren't there two companies as well? Might have something to do with how long it stops somewhere and theaters being able to handle it. I know the Majestic here was remodeled to hold Phantom when it came back through and I'm guessing for TLK as well since that's about the time the show started touring.
Oh and I've been meaning to ask Lion_King_300: Who is the Simba in your av and do you have the whole pic to share? :D
Yes there are two tours, the "Cheetah" tour which is primarily on the West Coast and southern U.S. while the "Gazelle" tour is found on the East Coast and central U.S.
The Simba in my avatar is Roger Wright from the London TLKOB production. He played the role for almost three years before moving on to other acting and music producing ventures. He is with a pop group called "Fresh." He has won various modeling awards and modeled for companies like Armani.
Here is a page with a clip of him singing the end of "He Lives in You reprise":
http://www.disney.co.uk/MusicalTheat...andlisten.html
(You may notice that he's also featured on the TLK special edition DVD in the clips about TLKOB)
He has a very powerful voice and seems like a great actor, I would very much have enjoyed seeing him perform. I actually got the pic for the avatar from a DVD screenshot. I can get some more pics of Roger if you want, if you don't have a DVD player that can take stills.